Prof. Dr. habil. Silvia Freiin Ebner von Eschenbach

Silvia Ebner von Eschenbach has been an associate professor of Sinology at the University of Würzburg since 2000.

Academic career

Master’s degree in 1982 and doctorate in 1985 in Sinology, Indology and Mongolian Studies at the University of Munich. 1986 Diploma in Geography with Economics at the Technical University of Munich. 1994 Habilitation and Venia legendi in Sinology at the University of Würzburg. Dissertation topic: ‘Die Entwicklung der Wasserwirtschaft im Südosten Chinas in der südlichen Sung-Zeit anhand einer Fallstudie. Das ‘Ssu-ming T’o-shan shui-li pei-lan des Wei Hsien’. Subject of diploma thesis: ‘Raumstruktur der chinesischen Provinz Yün-nan im Spiegel ch’ing-zeitlicher Quellen unter besonderer Berücksichtigung agrar- und ethnographischer Aspekte‘. Topic of habilitation thesis: ‚Die Sorge der Lebenden um die Toten. Thanatopraxis und Thanatologie in der Song-Zeit (960 – 1279)‘. 1986 to 1987 DAAD scholarship for a research stay in Taipei. 1988 to 1994 temporary appointment at the Sinology department of the University of Würzburg as a research assistant. 1995 scholarship from the University of Würzburg. 1996 habilitation scholarship from the Görres- Gesellschaft zur Pflege der Wissenschaft. 1997 to 1998 substitute chair of Sinology at the University of Cologne. Membership (current) in academic associations: European Association of Chinese Studies (EACS), German Association for Chiense Studies (DVCS), Association of Historians of Germany, Görres-Gesellschaft zur Pflege der Wissenschaft, Münchner Geographische Gesellschaft.

Field of research and training

Economic and social history of the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties
Environmental history
Agriculture, hydraulic engineering, regional economy
Regional history of southeast, southwest and northwest China
Cultural history and cultural anthropology across dynasties with contemporary relevance
Buddhism, Indian and Central Asian influences